The construction industry has been plaqued by the troublesome task of aligning and installing heavy panels on the exterior of a building. Typically panels may be aligned on the ground, and those above are automatically aligned when stacked on top. The greatest problem is encountered on those panels which are hung directly above an opening in the exterior wall. For those panels, the task of plumbing and aligning is vastly more difficult.
The only structure known to the inventor for the installation of such panels requires cumbersome equipment and a great amount of time to align and mount each panel. First, a small scaffold is constructed on the interior of the building adjacent the window opening over which the panel is to be installed. Long boards are then affixed to the scaffold, cantilevered outwards to the exterior wall. A large counterweight is attached to the scaffold so that the boards will support the weight of a panel and men working on it. A panel is then hoisted by a crane and supported by the cantilevered boards in the approximate location for installation. The panel is then shimmed upwards and laterally as necessary using crow bars and wedge-shaped material inserted under the panel. Once a panel is installed the scaffold must be completely disassembled and moved to the next location after which the steps noted above are repeated.
It can therefore be seen that this process requires a great deal of time and several workmen to install each panel. The cost and time involved in installing a large number of these panels can have a major effect on the cost of the total project.